William
Shakespeare himself wrote about two of the English kings named Richard in his plays. Richard I
(1157-1199), or Richard the Lionhearted, was a great warrior and military strategist, and was
noted for his chivalry and courage. He was part of the Norman rule, and spoke only French,
spending very little time in England. Therefore, not only could he not communicate with the
English, he had little contact with any of the people of his kingdom. His son, Richard II of
England was a tall, handsome, and intelligent man, who had some type of personality disorder as
his misrule led to his tragic downfall. Richard III was involved in the War of the Roses, and
was slain at the Battle of Bosworth Field, the last king to lose his life in battle.
Certainly, there are several parallels among the kings Richard and . For, Cory is
perceived as distant royalty; like the handsome Richard the Lionhearted who knew no
English, Cory, too, is perceived as a gentleman, an aristocrat above those who worked, unable to
communicate with common people, the people "on the pavement." In a similar fashion to
Richard II, there is the suggestion that something is wrong with Richard Cory as he seems like
the perfect gentleman, but he commits suicide one "calm summer night."
Of course, the last name, Corey, is of Irish derivation, suggesting then that the regal
Richard, suggestive of English kings is not what he seems to be. Since there is no surname of
Cory, actually, but only Corey, the suggestion here is that Richard Cory is anything but
"everything/To make us wish that we were in his place." Indeed, the name of Richard
Cory connotes the wrong characteristics for the tragic man of a lonely and disturbed
existence whom no one understands